Free 'Fall Adventure Day' in Chicago
Enjoy the world-class city in your backyard and celebrate the great outdoors at the same time at Fall Adventure Day, a free day of family fun. The Chicago Park District invites families to Northerly Island to enjoy fall themed arts and crafts; local harvest; ghost stories; fish in Lake Michigan; watch the fall bird migration; enjoy a guided nature hike; and generally celebrate the changing of the season at the educational outdoor event. Kids 8 years and older will have the chance to kayak in Burnham Harbor (on a first-come, first-served basis). Two trips will be available, one hour each, and kayakers can paddle around Burnham Harbor.
10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 16., at the Visitor Center at Northerly Island, 1400 S. Lynn White Drive. For information, call (312) 742-5039.
Monthlong arty party
You still have time to take advantage of Chicago Artists Month (CAM), an annual celebration of Chicago's talented and diverse visual arts community that takes place during the month of October. Choose from more than 200 exhibitions, openings, demonstrations, tours, lectures and panel discussions featuring Chicago artists and their work in museums, galleries, parks, neighborhood art centers, artists' studios and other locations throughout the city. This year's theme, “City as Studio, explores the impact of the urban environment on Chicago artists and their work, and the strengths that artists bring to the city.
For the complete schedule, visit Chicagoartistsmonth.org or call the Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs at (312) 744-4405.
Block out time for building
Every third Sunday of the month, the Chicago Architecture Foundation offers activities, walking tours, stories and more for the whole family via CAF Family Studio Sundays.
Next week, you can Be a Building! Get inspired with a tour of the Cultural Center a building with bling then it's time to make your very own building costume. While the other kids don their Jonas Brothers' and ghost costumes, your kid can be the Willis Tower. The program is geared for children ages 3 to 12 and their caregivers.
11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 17, at 224 S. Michigan Ave., Chicago. For details, call (312) 322-1134 or architecture.org.
Haunted train, life on the plain
Plan a weekend in McHenry County. Family farms stage “Autumn Drive along a country road with stops featuring antiques, crafts, pumpkins and other surprises. The same weekend, the McHenry County Conservation District offers a trip back to pioneer life in the old Northwest Territory, with actors in period dress conducting demos, making crafts, playing music and making some fine food. Plus, on Friday and Saturday nights throughout October, the Illinois Railroad Museum in Union presents “Terror on the Railroad, a haunted train experience for those older than 13 who live to be scared.
9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday to Sunday, Oct. 15-17, along Autumn Drive, Garden Valley Road, Woodstock to Marengo, autumndrive.net. 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday and Sunday, Oct. 16 -17, Trail of History, Glacial Park, 6316 Harts Road, Ringwood. $7 for adults; $3 for seniors and children 6-12; free for kids 5 and younger. Go tomccdistrict.org. 7 to 11 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays in October, Terror on the Railroad, Illinois Railroad Museum, Union. Tickets cost $12 per person. Go to IRM.org. For lodging ideas, visit www.VisitMcHenryCounty.com, or call the McHenry County Convention & Visitors Bureau at (888) 363-6177.
Drive through the art land
It's nearly time for the popular Fall Art Tour in Wisconsin, a once-per-year tour that includes artists at 40 studios between Mineral Point, Spring Green, Dodgeville and Baraboo. During the three-day tour, visit artists in their studios as they demonstrate and sell their work. Expect to meet painters, sculptors, potters, weavers, jewelers, woodworkers, mixed-media artists and more. Drive through the autumn countryside and visit studios in restored breweries, one-room schoolhouses and historic storefronts.
10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Friday to Sunday, Oct. 15-17. Get maps, dining and lodging info at fallarttour.com.
Barns and noble
Head west for the All State Iowa Barn Tour, the Iowa Barn Foundation's annual free, self-guided tour of restored historic barns. See and photograph restored barns, some of which received awards of distinction from the Iowa Barn Foundation. For example, the Wegener barn is a massive turn-of-the-century double gambrel barn (that's still an integral part of the Wegener family's farming operation) and the Handsaker's colossal square barn, built in 1870 on their farm, has been restored from its limestone foundation to the cupola. The tour is arranged so that you can go from barn to barn on your own, as time and distances permit, and tour maps are available at each barn.
8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday to Sunday, Oct. 16-17. iowabarnfoundation.org/events.htm.
Worth the trip.b>
Women love the quote about how Ginger Rogers managed everything her debonair dancing partner, Fred Astaire, did but also backward and in heels. Guys can finally feel gals' pain by running back and forth on a city block and up and down a hill wearing high heels and toting some sort of absurd object like a bird cage or a pumpkin. The High Heeled Drag Race is a campy highlight of New Hope, Pennsylvania's annual Halloween celebration that also includes the annual Mischief March, Time Warp Masquerade, the Spirits Carnival Street Fair and a Pumpkin Ball. Nestled along the banks of the Delaware River and less than an hour from Philadelphia, New Hope boasts many restaurants, antique shops, art galleries and a vibrant night life.
Friday to Saturday, Oct. 29-30, at Mechanic and Main streets, New Hope, Pa. (215) 862-9990 or newhopehalloween.com.